apps

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! You can tell a lot about someone from the apps they have installed on their phone. Knowing some of their favorite apps gives you even greater insight into that person. Today we're going to give thanks to the apps on Windows Phone that the team at Windows Central appreciates.

Apps are the focus of Microsoft's latest ad for Windows and Windows Phone as the software giant showcases some of the popular apps for its platforms. One of the long-standing concerns with Microsoft's mobile platforms on tablets and smartphones is the lack of a robust app library, especially when compared against rivals such as Android and iOS, so it's nice to see Microsoft address the situation in this new ad. In addition to highlighting some popular apps, Microsoft also shows off multitasking on its Surface Pro 3.

Microsoft has just updated its "by the numbers" page to represent that the Windows Phone Store has surpassed the 300,000 app milestone. That's a hefty number, and even more exciting considering that Microsoft reported it had 200,000 apps on offer back in December of 2013 — at this rate of growth who knows what the app catalog could look like by the end of the year.

Tweetium is one of the best Twitter clients available for Windows 8.1. Which is why we were really stoked to learn that a Windows Phone 8.1 version of the app was in development. Last week we gave you boys and girls a sneak peek at the upcoming version of Tweetium for Windows Phone 8.1. Today you can get your hands on a beta version of the app. Details below.

If you're loyal to Hilton, the hotel chain's official Hilton HHonors app for Windows Phone should make booking and managing your stay even easier. With the new app, which debuted in the Windows Phone store, Hilton guests can now find and book hotels as well as manage their Hilton HHonors membership.

After having launched a dedicated Windows Phone app complete with coupons, convenient store chain 7-Eleven has dropped support for the beloved platform. The company did not give any reason why it had made this decision when a reader emailed asking about why he is not getting any more coupons.

The official Pizza Hut app for Windows Phone has been in a state of decay for some time. Simply running a quick check on the store listing will reveal countless single-star reviews from consumers who have experienced problems with the experience. Thankfully, the development team have released an update that should hopefully address the serious problems hindering this pretty neat app.

Prognoza is an attractive Windows Phone 8 weather app that delivers the basic forecast information to your phone. The app recently won the Windows Phone Challenge in Bosnia/Herzegovina this year and while we have plenty of weather apps in the Windows Phone Store, Prognoza does have a certain level of eye-appeal.

If you're looking for a basic weather app for your Windows Phone, Prognoza is worth a look.

Reddit (www.reddit.com) likes to call itself the 'front page of the internet'; it is a place where anyone on the World Wide Web can gather together to share content. The content is sorted into various “Subreddits” and then is voted upon by “up” or “down” buttons. Essentially, Reddit is an online news and entertainment source with user curated submissions that are voted upon by the community.

If you have even opened a web browser since June of 2005, when the site originally launched, then we have to assume that you have probably used Reddit or at the very least, visited it. Today, we are going to take a look at different ways to visit Reddit through some of our favorite Windows 8 apps available in the Windows Store.

BINGO might be a great game for your grandparents to download and enjoy, but it can also be a great relaxing way to pass the time with your Windows 8 PC. Today, we will be counting down the top BINGO games available in the Windows Store and comparing the different features and methodologies between each. Let us get started and do not worry, as all of the apps mentioned are free!

Windows Phone Central App Roundup: Beer Apps

Beers and breweries have seen a rise in popularity over the past few years, to the point it can be a challenge to keep up with all the brands, styles and breweries that are now available. Luckily, we have a small collection of Windows Phone apps in the Store to help those who indulge in the sudsy beverages keep tabs on things.

This week’s Windows Phone Central roundup focuses on a handful of these beer apps. We’ve picked four of the top rated beer oriented apps to shine the spotlight on. Three the help you search and find the various beer brands, styles and breweries and one to help those who dabble in home brewing.

As with all of our roundups, if we have over looked your favorite beer app sound off down below in the comments and share your recommendation.

Mobile banking has continued to take off as more consumers purchase smartphones. Polish mBank (www.mbank.pl) has joined other banking establishments by releasing an official app for Windows Phone. The client enables customers to connect and login to their accounts, check balances, statements and carry out general account management.

It's old news when we talk about Microsoft's problem with getting developers on-board with both Windows and Windows Phone. The company has had trouble having new content developed and released on its own operating systems alongside iOS and Android. It's no secret that Microsoft platforms are generally left in the dark — just take a look at Flappy Bird.

Now, according to The Verge, Redmond could be considering Android apps to solve its problems. We've previously looked at what Microsoft is actively doing to help alleviate their market growth issues, but there could always be more done to bring across more platform support.

Windows Phone Central App Roundup: Valentine's Day Apps

For those who have been out of town or simply hiding under a rock, this Friday is Valentine’s Day. If you have a significant other and have completely forgotten about this “special” day, we have a few Windows Phone apps that may keep you out of the doghouse.

This week’s Windows Phone Central Roundup falls a few days early, to help those who suffer from losing track of time and possibly saving countless relationships globally. Quick disclaimer though, we don’t guarantee any of these Windows Phone apps will save you from sleeping on the couch, save you from the silent treatment or successfully wooing your partner if you have completely forgotten about Valentine's Day.

We’ll touch on a few greeting card apps that may give you a little more time to run down to the local gift store, an app that will let you order flowers from your Windows Phone, a shopping app from a merchant that offers overnight delivery and a dining app just in case you forgot to make reservations.

If you are interested in seeing how your Windows Phone's overall performance stacks up to other phones and tablets, you may be interested in Basemark OS II, a cross-platform benchmark tool by Rightware, simultaneously released on iOS, Android and Windows Phone.

Basemark OS II runs a battery of performance tests, including system, memory, graphics, web browsing and camera and then assigns a score based on the results.

Feedly client app, Pheeb, which came out last month, has released their first update. Most notably, Pheeb version 1.1 adds support for right-to-left feeds, but it also includes several bug fixes and performance improvements. Head past the break for all the details.

The word game of Hangman is one that had arisen during Victorian Times and is still played to this very day. A simple, yet addicting, game that started with paper and pencil has made it to Windows 8 in a well-designed application by Random Salad Games – Hangman Pro. Despite the add-on of the word “Pro” to the end of the game’s title, there is in fact no light version or paid version of the game; the game is free to all who wish to play, so check it out after the break.

We're rounding off our Monday with a batch of small updates that have been pushed to the Windows Phone Store. While we all recover from a rather busy CES 2014 (for Windows 8 and beyond), platform developers are still releasing updates for all your installed apps. Today we'll be looking at Asphalt 8, DI.FM and Status Tiles. Head past the break for the details.

Fancy sending a personalised holiday greeting this year? Microsoft is providing you the means to do so with a special carol, dedicated to the person of your choice. With Jingle Bells or Silent Night to choose from, you're also able to pick a free app to bundle with the merry gift and everything will be taken care of for you. All you're left with is a link to share and you're done.

Windows Phone Central Roundup: Games and apps for the Holiday Season

With Christmas right around the corner, what better way to get into the Holiday Spirit than with a few Christmas themed Windows Phone apps and games?

This week’s Windows Phone Central Roundup features a few such games and apps. We pulled a handful of the top rated apps and games from the Windows Phone Store for this week's roundup. There is one app to give your Windows Phone lockscreen a holiday touch, a couple games with a Holiday touch, and one app to keep track of Saint Nick on his global journey.